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Date Published:
04 March 2019

Volume 10, Issue 2


The story behind North America's largest food waste digester

Feature
In January, the California Pollution Control Financing Authority (CPFA) issued $117million (€103 million) in tax exempt bonds to fund in part the construction of Anaergia’s Rialto Bioenergy Facility (RBF) in Southern California. When completed, the RBF facility will be the largest food waste digester in North America, converting 700 tons of food waste and 300 tons of biosolids per day... [read more]

Sharp contrasts

Feature
The USA continuesto be a land of sharp contrasts forbioenergy businesses and renewable sector investors, managing to mix immense opportunities for innovative growth and development with deepseated frustration for those seeking to get new projects up and running. Ever-ambitious and often well-funded, plans for expansion are constantly being held in check by slowmoving and under-resourced... [read more]

Multiple options

Feature
Biogas, which is basically a gas mixture of methane and carbon dioxide, originated from organic substrates put through anaerobic digestion processes, has immense potential to reduce our dependency on fossil-based natural gas. Biogas from organic substrates like municipal waste, food waste, animal farm waste or energy crops can be used in the same applications as landfill gas. In order to meet... [read more]

AD solution from livestock

Feature
A process developed for use in the livestock farming industry has been identified as the best way of maximising biogas production in anaerobic digestion (AD) plants. The process, involving the preservation of crops such as maize, grass or rye, has been tested alongside two alternatives in a major new study of biogas production at Harper Adams University in Shropshire, UK. The researchers found... [read more]

Attractive AD

Feature
A new waste-to-gas plant has become operational in Varennes, a city in the Canadian province of Québec. The facility is owned by the Canadian Société d’économiemixte de l’est de la couronnesud (SÉMECS), a public-private partnership between BiogazEG and 27 area municipalities. It is the first of its kind in Québec, a province which has... [read more]

Chain reaction

Feature
An advertisement in an 1885 edition of The Canada Lumberman displays a “chaindrive” conveyor. The conveyor’s design is familiar: a trough through which sprockets pull a chain with bars over the bed. In a later advertisement, the same manufacturer claims their Ewart’s Patent Drive Chainsystem runs “Fast, Slow, Perpendicular, Horizontal” and requires “No... [read more]

Clean fraction

Feature
With more demanding recycling targets around the world, the waste screening systems industry has developed multiple solutions aimed at businesses, public and private utility companies for wasted isposal and the production of biomass, ecological fuels or renewable energy, to help them increase their performance and meet their objectives. Ecostar is one of the companies that, through many years of... [read more]

Dynamic drying

Feature
Bioenergy Insight speaks to Jan Gressmann, product manager at Eggersmann, abouti ts innovative drying system. Eggersmann has integrated the Municipal Solid Waste drying system and fitted it with the worlds’ largest turner, the BACKHUS CON100. The system was bought by the Faruk Group and is set to be put into service at a Mechanical-Biological Waste Treatment plant (MBT)in Iraq, for the very... [read more]

On the pulse

Feature
The Silbitz biomass power plant in Thuringia, Germany, produces 5.5MW of electricity and 3MW of district heat [a year] from waste wood. In order for production to remain competitive, a high degree of availability at the plant is required. This was not the case in Silbitz, because of the furnace, with heavy slagging on the walls resulted in short traveling periods and frequent downtimes. Since... [read more]

Inherent risk

Feature
As the world continues to strive to find ways to combat climate change, the methods and fuels used for power and heat generation remain strongly in focus. The energy sector is shifting towards creating a decarbonised and sustainable infrastructure. One method of achieving this goal is the use of biomass pellets as an alternative to traditional fossil fuels. Progress has been made in the UK in... [read more]

Structuring the woodchip market around quality

Feature
In Europe, wood chips represent about 50% of all solid biomass used for energy purposes today, making it one of the most popular commodities in this sector. Yet, and even though woodchips have been traded worldwide for decades, the market has been basically developing without a proper quality framework. Responding to a long-standing demand from the industry, GoodChips aims at correcting this... [read more]